RECIPE: What’s the Best Remedy for Winter? – Sweet Bison Chili

Chili of course! I love a good bowl of chili, and I’ve tried cooking (and eating!) many chili recipes over the years, and this one is by far my favorite. I taste-tested this recipe in the most wintery conditions possible: on a group of friends staying in a cabin on Lake George in the middle of winter, and it was all thumbs-up! This recipe is most ideal when made in a dutch oven, but you can also use a slow cooker. Plus, it’s gluten free!

Get Cooking!

1. On medium/high heat, cook bacon until crispy and save the grease (or, if cooking in a Dutch oven, cook the bacon in the dutch oven and keep the grease in the pot). Remove bacon from pan and save for later (this step is optional if you prefer not to use bacon)
2. Adjust heat to medium and add bison to the dutch oven (along with bacon grease)
3. Once bison is browned, add in sweet potato pieces and chorizo
4. Sweet potato pieces should be softer – now add red onion, jalapeno, cumin, chili powder, paprika, pepper and cayenne pepper.
5. Put lid on the dutch oven and let sit for 5 – 10 minutes (still on medium heat).
6. Now, add remaining ingredients – tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, maple syrup and honey, plus crumbled bacon. Cover and let cook on medium heat for another 10 minutes.
7. Try the chili and taste if you need to add more of any of the spices. Let cook on low heat for another 20 minutes, but keep taste-testing the chili. When the sweet potatoes are almost falling apart in the pot, you know it’s done!
8. Let cool and garnish with cilantro. And enjoy!